WhatsApp Notification Channels Added To Android Oreo

Not all notifications were created equal. For example while you might be receiving emails all day, there are probably only some that you probably want to pay attention to. The same can be said for messages as well, like WhatsApp, which in the latest update has taken advantage of Android 8.0 Oreo’s notification channels.

For those unfamiliar, Android Oreo introduced notification channels, which like we said above helps users separate which notifications are important/not important, or basically lets them choose which notifications they want to receive. As pointed out by Android Police, WhatsApp will support 10 notification channels which includes group notifications, message notifications, chat history backup, critical app alerts, failure notifications, media playback, uncategorized, other notifications, sending media, and silent notifications.

With these channels, users will now be able to pick and choose the notifications that they want to pay attention to. For example for group chats users will be able to place a low priority on notifications, so they won’t be bombarded all day with group chat messages, which can sometimes be rather inane. That being said, these changes are only found in the latest version of the WhatsApp beta.

This means that if you aren’t running on the beta then you probably won’t see it yet, but presumably it should be included in the next public update.